Iran, Syria Urge End to Saudi-Led Offensive on Yemen
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Syria's Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al-Meqdad on Monday discussed the latest regional developments including the crisis in Yemen, with both calling for a halt to the Saudi-led military attacks on the impoverished country.
"We are deeply concerned about the killing of defenseless and innocent people in Yemen and the destruction of the country's infrastructures, and are doing our utmost to stop the massacre," Zarif said during the meeting in Tehran.
Meqdad, for his part, condemned the deadly attacks on Yemenis and voiced support for Iran's four-point proposal for ending the crisis in Yemen.
In a letter to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon on April 17, Zarif put forward Tehran's four-point proposal to restore peace to Yemen.
The plan includes intra-Yemeni dialogue, humanitarian aid, immediate ceasefire, and the formation of an inclusive government in the Arabian Peninsula country.
On March 26, Saudi Arabia and some of its Arab allies began to militarily interfere in Yemen's internal affairs by launching deadly air strikes against the Houthi Ansarullah movement in an attempt to restore power to fugitive President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh.
According to reports, some 2,600 people, including women and children, have so far lost their lives in the attacks.